Pull of the Moonlight
by Eechi
Summary: A harmless outing turns into something more. Tsume has to reveal his feelings, & Saia must decide what to do about them. TsumexMy OC


**Author's Note: Tra-la-la, third little story I've come up with. :3 This one is longer than the others, & what's this...? Tsume has feelings?! o: Shock & Awe!**

**Disclaimer: Me not own awesome Wolf characters. Ug.**

**Saia my OC. Not Blood+ Saya.

* * *

**Tsume walked down the street, nonchalantly taking in the view all around him. The young girl walking beside him was more alert, her gray-green eyes taking in everything and analyzing it for danger. Tsume would trust Saia with his life, as he was doing now.

The pair were not in any trouble, they were not in enemy territory, and no one was threatening to kill them with guns. Seemingly, all was good in the world.

Still, it never hurt to be cautious.

"Are you sure you don't want to head back to the shelter?" Tsume asked, surprising them both with his gentle tone. "I can handle one little city by myself."

Saia shook her head slightly, never looking up at him, always surveying the area. "You only get to relax when I come with you. Otherwise, you'd be on edge the entire time, and that makes you crabby," she stated quietly.

This startled a laugh out of Tsume; which made Saia smile slightly.

"See?" she asked. "You need these walks. They're good for you." Raising her head to inspect his face, Saia smiled a bit larger.

Tsume suck in a breath. He couldn't believe his luck in finding this girl, this wonderfully smelling, intelligent, beautiful girl. Before he had been stuck with Kiba, the bastard "leader" of their "pack," Toboe, the crybaby, and Hige. Hige was the most annoying idiot you could ever hope --or not-- to meet, but he was the one who had sniffed out Saia. His nose was the sharpest out of them all, and he was especially sensitive to females.

Thus Blue had joined them, as well, somehow managing to fall for Hige as she did. Tsume couldn't understand her attraction to the sandy-haired wolf; then again, he couldn't explain his feelings for Saia.

_No, stop that,_ he told himself firmly. _You don't have any feelings for Saia. She's merely a pack-mate._

As he had mulled over these thoughts, he and Saia had come to the edge of the city. They stopped just before the great dome ended, staring out at the vast expanse of forest between them and a few lonely mountains. Saia sighed softly, and Tsume noticed a wistful expression on her pale face.

He paused, considering the thought and any possible implications it might hold, before he voiced his idea:

"You wanna go running tonight? Our there, I mean," he asked in what he considered to be an uninterested tone. Saia glanced up at him quickly, her eyes shining in a way that made Tsume gulp.

"Tonight is a full moon," she remarked quietly.

He tense, wondering if she had noticed how crazy he went whenever there was a full moon in the short time she had been with them. It was the only time the guys didn't completely annoy the hell out of him; they enjoyed teasing him about everything he did when he was "sober" again.

The white-haired wolf stared at Saia as she thought it over. She repeatedly glanced at the trees as she did so. Tsume knew she wanted to run badly; it was her favorite thing to do. The pack had been trapped in the city for almost a month now, and she couldn't exactly race through the streets without attracting some attention.

Finally her expression melted into an almost helpless excitement, and she turned to Tsume.

"I'd love to run with you tonight," she exclaimed happily, a smile lighting up her face. Tsume's heart skipped a few beats as she grinned at him, stopped entirely when she grabbed his hand, turned around, and raced back the way they had come, towards the den.

He tried to ignore the warmth of her hand in his as he let himself be pulled along, but the fact was, Saia was always unnaturally warm. Hige frequently joked about her being their "own personal heater." Saia herself didn't understand why she was so warm, but none of them had complained when they had been wandering in the vast northern wastelands for a time. Even Tsume had snuggled up then.

In fact… He had most often been the one curled up right next to Saia, oddly enough.

When they finally made it back to the abandoned building they were sleeping in, Saia dropped Tsume's hand and went to greet Toboe. She had sort of adopted him as her little brother, in a way. For some reason, combined with the sudden coldness of his hand, the relationship made Tsume… Jealous?

_No, that can't be. Only a pack-mate! Only a pack-mate…_

…_Right?

* * *

_

"And just where are you two going, hmm?" Questioned Blue as Tsume and Saia attempted to sneak out of the building late that night. Tsume stiffened, but Saia answered naturally, "We're going out to find something to eat. Hige ate most of today's dinner, and we're still hungry." Tsume was surprised at how easily the lies slipped out of Saia's mouth.

Hige made an indignant noise from the far side of the building. "I did not! I left plenty for everyone else."

"I'm sure you did," crooned Blue, walking over to him. "Some, however, have bellies bigger than grapes." Hige snorted, but both were distracted, so Tsume and Saia continued their escape.

However, they were stopped once more by Kiba's voice. "Don't go too far," he said quietly.

Saia and Tsume nodded, knowing that Kiba wouldn't give them any trouble. He understood, as much as Tsume hated to admit it.

Saia said nothing as they made their way through the city to the outer wall. As soon as they managed to get outside, they stopped. Glancing back only briefly at Tsume, the raven-haired girl seemed to vanish, she moved so fast.

Tsume caught up with her after a short while, running with her through the trees. Suddenly Saia howled, the noise sweeping Tsume up and making him howl along with her. The sound echoed off the trees, sounding large and joyous to Tsume's ears.

He jumped as he felt something nipping at his tail, turning to find it was Saia, playfully snapping at his heels. He didn't have to worry about her hitting a tree; she dodged about so gracefully it was as if she knew where the trees were going to be before they appeared. Tsume grinned at her show of emotions and twisted about, dancing around a tree before taking off again in a different direction.

And so the game of tag continued, creating a sense of playfulness throughout the forest as the moon shown down upon the frolicking wolves. Finally, Saia slid to a halt in a clearing beside a small pond, collapsing on the grass, panting heavily. Her grin grew, if possible, as Tsume appeared beside her.

She glanced over at him before heaving herself to her paws and leaning over to get a drink of water. Tsume stared, entranced, as the moonlit water reflected off her silver, black, and white fur. He couldn't understand how or why he felt so strongly about this girl, with her gray-green eyes, pale complexion, raven hair, and the faint smell of cinnamon she always wore draped about her like a robe.

Saia lifted her head from the water just as she was thrown onto her back, a decidedly human presence looming above her. Her raven hair fanned out around her head on the grass, the moon covering Tsume in shadow.

The white-haired man gazed down into her eyes, determined to do something for once and for all. He lowered his head slowly, stopping as his breath ghosted over her mouth.

"Is this simply an affect of the moon on your mind?" Wondered Saia, her lips barely touching his as she spoke. Just that simple contact sent shivers racing down Tsume's spine, delighting him.

"No," he answered, his voice husky. "No, this is definitely something… Something more."

Saia smiled gently up at him at his answer, raising her hand to run it through his hair curiously. Tsume shivered again and leaned into her touch, prompting her to raise her other hand and do the same with it. He brought his lips down to press softly against hers, tasting the sweet cinnamon he had known was there all along. Saia's hands clenched slightly in his short silver hair, pulling him closer to her.

Tsume felt something growing inside of him, in his chest, a tightening, desperation to claim this beautiful girl as his. It was different from the jealousy he had come to terms with when the other males touched her; this was much more powerful.

"Saia… Saia!" he barely managed to get the words out loud enough for her to hear.

"Yes?" She breathed.

"Saia… I…" He paused, fearing rejection, but finding none as Saia ran her fingers through his hair. "I think I love you. I was trying not to, but… I can't resist you. I don't know why. I hate myself for being so weak, but I love you."

Saia grew still at his admission. Something like this, coming from Tsume, meant more than all the declarations of love in the world. He wasn't exactly known for being cute and cuddly.

Tsume, meanwhile, had drawn slightly away at her silence. He now hovered over her indecisively, hardly daring to breathe. It was his eyes that made up Saia's mind. In them she could see his desire for her to return his feelings, even though his face was a mask of uncertainty.

She slowly brought her hands back up to cup his face gently, smiling as she said, "Now, how could I resist something like that?" She pulled his face down to meet hers, kissing him once lightly on the lips before resting her forehead against his.

"I've loved you all along, silly Tsume. Couldn't you tell?" the raven-haired girl admitted.

Tsume's eyes widened as she spoke, the love and relief clearly visible in them, enough to melt Saia's heart. Moving her hands around to the back of his head, she pulled his lips down to hers once more, giving herself up to the pull of the moonlight.

* * *

A few hours later, two wolves emerged from the forest surrounding the city. 

Saia and Tsume walked hand in hand back to the den where the pack was resting. The journey was a quiet one, both content simply to be near each other.

This time, when they entered the building, she didn't let go of his hand.


End file.
